7th grader from Hoffman Estates is 'Money Smart Kid'
A 13-year-old from Hoffman Estates won a $3,000 college scholarship and the title of "Money Smart Kid" after writing an essay about income volatility.
Hannah Savella, a seventh-grader at Larsen Middle School in Elgin, was selected among 45 students from fifth to seventh grades from the Chicago area who wrote essays on the topic. The contest was part of Money Smart Week, a national campaign that offers free events to help people better manage their finances. It runs Saturday through April 6.
Hannah earned a $3,000 scholarship from sponsor Country Financial. She and five other finalists were interviewed by a panel of judges and she was named the winner during a "Money Smart Week" kickoff breakfast Thursday at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.
Hannah stood out thanks to her research, passion for the topic and "strong knowledge of personal finance concepts," said Carrie Skogsberg, public relations specialist for Country Financial.
"Income volatility is defined as the variance of income which can be measured by the amount of significant rises and dips in income over the course of the following month or year," Hannah wrote in her essay. "High volatility means higher concern about what the value of an asset will be in the future."
Hannah said she learned about the contest during a school announcement and thought, "might as well do it."
She wasn't familiar with the topic of income volatility, so she did a lot of research, she said.
"My idea is to get as much information as possible and then condense it," she said. "What I really like doing is, once you find that information, there's always more resources."
Her mother, Rosalie Savella, said the family is grateful for the scholarship and its sponsors.
Hannah always has been curious and loves books, and learned a lot about money and finances during frank family conversations, her mother said.
"From the beginning as a family, we tried to raise her with her knowing where money is coming from and how it really works," said Rosalie Savella, who works as an emergency room nurse. Hannah's father works as nuclear medicine technician.
"I think she learned from a practical way, instead of from books. ... In the community there are a lot of houses for sale, and it's an opportunity for us to talk to them about, 'Why is it happening?' and 'Why is a neighbor all of a sudden moving out?'"
Hannah said she plans to enter a STEM field - science, technology, engineering and math - possibly aeronautics or robotics.
"My favorite subject is mathematics. I like seeing how things work and such. I've always loved seeing definitive answers come out of things," she said. "My favorite class is English, because it's really fun and I like my teacher."
Second place went to Torry Rayford of St. Vincent Ferrer Catholic Elementary School in River Forest, and third place went to Charlotte Foster of John W. Garvy Elementary School in Chicago. Both won a $1,000 scholarship from Country Financial. The fourth- through sixth-place winners received laptops from Woodforest National Bank.